Database of Select Committee on GRAS Substances (SCOGS) Reviews

Your browser settings indicate that JavaScript is currently disabled.
Some features on this page may require the use of JavaScript.
You may need to enable JavaScript in order to enjoy the full
functionality of this page.

Enzymatically hydrolyzed protein

The average level of consumption of protein hydrolyzates for flavoring purposes is less than 3 mg per kg per day. Protein hydrolyzates are not used for flavoring purposes in commercially processed baby foods wich formerly may have contained about 2 percent by weight. The Select Committee was unable to locate reports of experimentally demostrable adverse effects of high concentrations of glutamate in dietary mixtures.

In light of the above, and assuming that appropriate product specifications are adopted, the Select Commitee concludes that:
There is no evidence in the available information on acid hydrolyzed proteins, enzymatically hydrolyzed protein, yeast autolysates, and soy sauces, that demonstrates, or suggests reasonable grounds to suspect, a hazard to the public when they are used as flavoring agents at levels that are now current or that might reasonably be expected in the future.

The situation is different regarding the use of enzymatic casein hydrolyzates as nutrients. These hydrolyzates are consumed or administered in much higher doses, frequently as the sole source of dietary protein in products that are used as special dietary foods.

Decades of clinical experience have revealed no reports of untoward effects when casein hydrolyzates are administered orally in combination with other nutrients such as glucose. Adverse effects of the dicarboxylic amino acid components have been reported only in rodents under unusual conditions of administration (e.g., gavage or subcutaneous injection) and are not considered relevant to the use of casein hydrolyzates by humans.

The Select Commitee therefore concludes that: There is no evidence in the available information on enzymatically hydrolyzed casein that demostrates, or suggests reasonable grounds to suspect, a hazard to the public when it is used as a nutrient in special dietary foods at levels that are now current or that might reasonably be expected in the future.